Auschwitz theft
March 18, 2010
A Polish court has convicted three of the five men who stole the "Arbeit Macht Frei" from the Auschwitz memorial site in December.
The three Polish men, two of whom are brothers, were sentenced to prison terms from 18 months to two and a half years. They were also each fined 10,000 zloty (2,580 euros, $3,530).
Two other men, said to have established contact with the Swedish alleged mastermind of the plot, are still waiting for their trial to begin.
The Polish court is delaying their trial until the Swedish man, 35-year-old former neo-Nazi leader Anders Hoegstroem, can be extradited to Poland. A Swedish court approved the extradition order last week.
A district court in Krakow said the convicted men confessed to the theft and agreed to the settlements, making a trial unnecessary.
The five-meter (16-foot) sign, which marks the entrance to the former Nazi concentration camp, was stolen a week before Christmas last year. It was found buried in a wood three days later, cut into three pieces.
cmk/AFP/AP/dpa
Editor: Susan Houlton